Striking workers kicking South Africa while it’s down: economist
Public servants across South Africa are set to engage in a nationwide strike on Tuesday (22 November 2022) in a bid for higher wages – but economist professor Bonke Dumisa says this is a selfish act amid the financial and economic challenges faced by the country as a whole.
Unions stated that the “National Day of Action” march would occur at the National Treasury’s offices in Pretoria, while union members would march to their equivalent across the other provinces.
Disruptions through go-slows or stay-aways are expected to occur at service centres such as public hospitals, ports and government institutions, e.g. home affairs and border control posts.
The Public Servants Association (PSA) said that unions had been forced to intensify their industrial action after communication between workers and the government remained deadlocked after their first strike – which took place at the end of October 2022.
Public servants still demand 10%, which the government will not entertain – resulting in unions vowing to ensure a national shutdown with threats of an indefinite strike.
Finance minister Enoch Godnogwana has said that the Treasury has done all it could have despite these threats. “We have no room to move at the moment; even in the medium-term budget policy statement, the carry-through costs we [South Africa] can afford are only for the 3%.”
The PSA, the National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (NEHAWU), and several other unions have been granted strike certificates, representing over 800,000 workers. The action has drawn the backing of Cosatu and the South African Communist Party (SACP).
While not related to the public sector strike, the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) in the Western Cape stated that they would also strike on Tuesday (22 November) in protest against several other grievances.
These grievances include issuing heavy traffic fines, vehicle impoundments, and discontinuing the Blue Dot taxi pilot project. The stay-away will affect thousands of commuters in the province, exacerbating the other action taking place.
An irresponsible action
Speaking to eNCA, economist professor Bonke Dumisa said that the trade unions and others planning on striking on Tuesday are acting irresponsibly, and this strike for higher wages indicates that they don’t care about the future of South Africa.
He said that public sector union members seem trapped in a state of victimhood when, in fact, they are getting more than what should be budgeted.
“South Africa’s 1.2 million public servants represent only 2% of South Africa’s population, yet they consume over 33% of the country’s expenditure budget,” said Dumisa.
“When the National Treasury says this is unsustainable and unaffordable, it’s not just words; it’s the truth,” he added.
Dumisa noted that South Africa faces much more critical challenges, such as energy generation, which had already cost the country billions. “To say ‘we [the public servants] don’t care about the more important issues, we just want our money’, is very selfish and risks the future stability of South Africa,” he said.
He also said that the cost of living crisis is not a problem unique to just public servants – everyone in South Africa, and even the world, has been impacted by this trend.
“The inflation rate in the UK, the EU, and the US is currently well above South Africa’s rate of 7.5%, but you don’t see public servants in those jurisdictions demanding pay increases. This is because they understand the current economic environment,” said Dumisa.
Additionally, Dumisa noted that during the Covid-19 pandemic, workers within the private sector experienced a high level of job losses and unstable pay, while the public servants did not.
“Public servants in South Africa were paid in full throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, which included their bonuses,” he said.
“In light of South Africa’s current situation, these strikes are very inappropriate. Public servants need to understand that there is no money in South Africa at the moment, and the interests of 2% of the country’s population don’t trump the needs of all South Africans, such as energy generation stability.
“There is a time and place for these grievances, and now is not the time,” he added.
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